welcome to 2010

In the spirit of the New Year, I have decided that it is time to open up to the world a little.

It was with this thought in mind that I found myself standing in the snow at my front door with a drill at 9.30am on New Year's Day.  Now we have a shiny new working doorbell which is great, in so many ways!
Our lovely postman will be happy that he doesn't have to hammer on the door and yell, not knowing whether we are in or out.  The teen's boyfriend will not be shut out in the rain for twenty minutes because no-one can hear him knocking and friends who pop round on the off-chance, will finally find the door opened and a welcoming cup of coffee instead of sore knuckles and the echoing silence of their un-answered thumps (sorry!).
Following the same theory, I will start to mention to friends and family that I write a blog.  It has been just 4 months and 46 posts since I started writing this so this is a real baby in the world of food-blogs.  I doubted my abilities to post regularly so I have not, so far, spread word of my blog beyond my closest colleagues and family members.  Those with whom I live could not have failed to notice my new obsession but, in case it was just that, a fad that I would tire of in 5 minutes, I have kept the blog under wraps.
Blogging takes real commitment and a dedication that can be hard to sustain when work and life in the wider world gets busier and more demanding of time & energy.  I know that I am going to experience lapses and gaps, and that when life intrudes, my passion for food and writing will have to take a back seat.  But I know that I will come back, because a lapse doesn't mean failure, it just means that life got in the way, and that happens to all of us.

When I found myself yesterday taking photo after photo of a gluten free sausage roll because we finally had an hour of sunshine, I realised that blogging completes a circle for me.  The circle starts with the constant thoughts and dreams of foods & ingredients, continues past the pile of cookbooks by my bed, the 24 tabs currently open on my browser with different recipes and cooking techniques, and embraces the fact that, for me, food is not just fuel but a means of expression and creativity.  By photographing and writing about the foods that I make, I am able to document my progress, and also retain a record of techniques and ideas that I have.  And that takes me back to the beginning, completing the circle.  I wish I had started blogging years ago.  This blog gives me an outlet for all my thoughts and recipes, a reason to try out new recipes & techniques and a place I can share my ideas with anyone who might appreciate the recipes and find them useful in their lives too.  It also removes a whole heap of pressure for my family and makes our family life a lot easier.  This is not just because there is food always on the table, but because they no longer have to listen to me endlessly hypothesising about grinding buckwheat groats to make my own soba noodles, or whether grains of ground kudzu have smooth or sticky edges, and feign interest.
Truly, you, as a reader, are keeping my family sane and I am extremely grateful to you!  I would love to hear your thoughts about the blog and especially any gluten-free recipes that would be particularly useful for you.  I am happy to give anything a go, so let me know what you miss the most and would love to eat again, in a gluten free version.  I am not promising that I will be able to turn my hand to everything, but I will happily try!
So, with that said, I want to get back to the mission in hand.  I have ingredients in the kitchen and 2 recipes to try before supper.  Thank you for reading, I hope that 2010 lives up to your hopes and dreams.
Happy New Year!